TORONTO ROCKS DOCS ON STONES, STOOGES, COLTRANE, TERRY KATH

The Rolling Stones, Justin Timberlake, John Coltrane, The Stooges, Chicago’s Terry Kath and a promoter with a connection to The Beatles will be featured in films receiving their world premieres between Thursday and 9/18 at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The festival will also screen Nick Cannon’s directorial debut, Universal’s animated mega-musical and Lionsgate’s prime Oscar contender, the musical La La Land, which premiered recently in Venice.

The festival’s music films, most of them documentaries, are:

The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America. Director Paul Dugdale shot the Stones in 10 Latin American cities, including Havana, earlier this year. Mick, Keith and the boys discuss their chemistry, touring and memories, visit artists in Uruguay, Brazil, Peru and Cuba and perform. Eagle Rock will release the DVD. The trailer is here.

Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary. Filmmaker John Scheinfeld (The U.S. vs. John Lennon) explores the life and work of saxophonist John Coltrane, with commentary and appreciations from ‘Trane devotees such as Cornell West and Bill Clinton and musicians Carlos Santana, Common, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins, Reggie Workman and Kamasi Washington.

Gimme Danger. Jim Jarmusch heads to Ann Arbor, Mich., to explore the story of Iggy Pop and The Stooges in new interviews with Iggy and other insiders plus older commentary from the late Asheton brothers Ron and Scott.

Justin Timberlake + The Tennessee Kids. Oscar winner Jonathan Demme returns to the concert doc format—he directed Stop Making Sense and three Neil Young films—to capture the closing performances of Timberlake’s 20/20 Experience tour in Las Vegas.

The Sixth Beatle. Liverpool concert promoter Sam Leach gives his side of the story about his role in raising the profile of The Beatles during their early years on the club circuit. He’s the guy the Fab Four left in favor of Brian Epstein. Directors Tony Guma and John Rose chronicle what Leach contends is “the last untold story of the Beatles."

The Terry Kath Experience. Michelle Sinclair makes her documentary debut with a search for the truth surrounding the life and untimely death of her father, Chicago co-founder and guitarist Terry Kath. Sinclair was two when Kath shot himself in an accident in 1978. Using footage, photos, and letters that have never before been made public, Sinclair explores the uniqueness of her father’s talent.

I Called Him Morgan. Kasper Collin (My Name is Albert Ayler) details one of the more lurid tales from the jazz history books: trumpeter Lee Morgan, one of Blue Note’s budding stars of the 1960s, and his common-law wife Helen, who murdered him at Slug's Saloon in New York in 1972. Collin employs extensive archival footage and new interviews to construct a double portrait about love, art and impulse.

Mali Blues. Director Lutz Gregor follows Fatoumata Diawara as she prepares for her first-ever home concert performance in Mali at the Festival of the Niger in 2015. Modern masters of Mali music—Bassekou Kouyaté and Ahmed Ag Kaedi among them—discuss the threatening political climate in Mali, a subject explored in They Will Have to Kill Us First.

King of the Dancehall. Nick Cannon directs and stars in this musical about a Brooklynite who gets caught up in the Kingston music scene during a visit to Jamaica. Whaddya know: It’s got a weed-dealing subplot. And Whoopi Goldberg. And Busta Rhymes.

La-La Land. Director Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) has created an homage to the classic Hollywood musical with Ryan Gosling playing a jazz pianist and Emma Stone pursuing her acting dreams. It will be in U.S. theaters 12/16.

Sing. Garth Jennings’ animated musical comedy about a koala (Matthew McConaughey) who holds a singing contest to save his theater is being screened as a work in progress. (Universal has a 12/21 release date). Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Seth MacFarlane, Jennifer Saunders, Nick Kroll and Reese Witherspoon are among the vocal talent; film is packed with about 100 songs.